Vitamins are essential nutrients that provide nourishment to the human body and sustenance for several physiological processes occurring in the human body. Although vitamins occur naturally in balanced diets that are rich in a variety of fruits and vegetables, there is frequently a need to supplement the naturally occurring vitamins through dietary supplements (such as vitamin pills and powders). A convenient way to consume water-soluble powdered vitamin supplements at regular intervals through the day is by adding and dissolving the vitamin powder in drinking water (e.g., stored in water bottles). Vitamins, in powder form, may be added to the drinking water in water bottles using utensils such as spoons.
Commonly occurring spoons used for household purposes have shallow bowls that are inadequate in shape and volume for containing vitamin powder or other medicaments without spillage. It would be beneficial to have spoons with curved edges along the bowls that form a receptacle to contain the vitamin powder so that the vitamin powder can be added to a water bottle without spillage of the powder during the process of dispensing the powder into the bottles.
Spoons with curved edges have been described in various patents. For example, U.S. Pat. No. D284,894 entitled ‘Medicament Dispenser Spoon’ describes an ornamental design for a medicament dispenser spoon.
As another example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,524,513 entitled ‘Flat Tip Spoon’ describes a spoon with a bowl with a rearwardly extending handle and a forwardly extending flat tip end area portion. Furthermore, the spoon described in this patent includes convexly arcuate side edges of the bowl which merge with and terminate a substantial distance rearwardly from the forward portion of the flat tip end area portion.
While these spoons provide receptacles for material (e.g., medication, vitamins and the like) directed thereinto, they do not possess the necessary shape and dimensions to dispense medicaments by direct introduction of the spoons into narrow-rimmed containers (such as water bottles) so as to minimize spillage of the material. Accordingly, what is needed in the art are improved spoons for medicament handling.